New York (AFP) – U.S. stocks were mostly higher in early trade Monday in markets lacking little direction amid a federal holiday that meant no major economic releases were on tap.
After an hour of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 19.07 points (0.12 percent) at 15,780.85.
The broad-based S&P 500 Index rose 0.24 (0.01 percent) to 1,770.85, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite slipped 6.97 (0.18 percent) to 3,912.26.
The action followed the markets’ roller-coaster ride last week that left the Dow at a record high and the S&P 500 within a hair of a record on Friday, buoyed by stronger than expected data on economic and jobs growth.
Trading volume was expected to be thinner than usual because of the Veterans Day holiday. The bond market was closed in observance of the holiday.
Twitter fell 2.1 percent to $40.77 after its spectacular market debut Thursday.
Amazon gained 1.1 percent. The online retail giant announced it has struck a partnership with the U.S. Postal Service for delivery of its packages on Sundays.
Electronics retailer chain Best Buy jumped 3.2 percent on bullish analyst comments as the company restructures and cuts costs.
Soft-drinks giant PepsiCo was flat after announcing it would invest more than $5 billion by 2020 in India to boost production. Rival Coca-Cola, which last year said it would spend $5 billion in India over the next seven years, dipped 0.3 percent.
ExxonMobil rose 0.2 percent on an Argus Research upgrade.
Concho Resources, a Texas oil producer, bounced 1.6 percent higher after unveiling an accelerated three-year growth plan, winning an upgrade to “buy” from Canaccord Genuity.
